Sunday, July 3, 2011

The USS Cod

On our 42nd anniversary (see previous post), we went on a self guided tour of the USS Cod, a World War II submarine. This one is the only one left which has not been heavily modified to more readily accommodate tourists. The Cod is pretty much just as it was during the war.And it still is service- able. They start it up every month or two, just to keep it in decent condition. But they have to be careful. There are strict laws against operating any kind of war vessel on any of the Great Lakes.
Look closely at the right and you'll see the periscope. Just like in the movies! "up periscope!"

It is amazing to see how cramped it is in there. And difficult to imagine that as many as 90 men would man it at any one time. Makes the two of us living in our RV seem quite palatial!

To the left is a pic of the most important part of the whole sub! And it's bigger than the one we have!

The sub has four huge diesel engines. But, curiously, it is all electric. Huge electric motors actually drive the boat. The diesel engines just power huge generators which provide the electricity and recharge the batteries.

And, of course, something else we always see in the movies are the torpedo tubes. Pictured here are two of the four on board the Cod -- two at each end.

There's not much wasted space in this thing! It is tight quarters everywhere! But we are told that the subs always got the best food. Real top notch, apparently. That must be to make up for the lack of much of anything else!

3 comments:

When we went to San Fransisco a few years back, we went into a sub like that. I couldn't wait to get back out! I think I would hyperventilate if I had to go underwater in that thing and live for months at a time!